Everton owner Farhad Moshiri urges Toffees fans to ‘bear with us’ as the protracted sale of the club enters ‘the home straight’

Everton owner Farhad Moshiri has urged Toffees fans to ‘bear with us’ as the club’s lengthy sale moves into ‘the home front’.

The Toffees’ Fan Advisory Board (FAB) this week wrote to Moshiri, potential owners 777 Partners and the Premier League seeking answers, with the takeover appearing to have stalled since it was first agreed last September.

Fans also asked for clarification on what would happen if the deal falls through, but Moshiri and 777 responded to reassure them that the takeover will go ahead and that the delay was due to the Premier League’s ‘approval process’.

The FAB posted both letters from Moshiri and 777 management partner Josh Wander to X and said they were still waiting for the Premier League’s response.

‘We received responses to 2 of the 3 letters we sent on Monday. Our letter to the PL was postponed due to technical problems on our side,” the FAB said.

‘The PL has promised to respond next week. We will comment on all three responses in more detail once we have received and processed all of them.”

Moshiri, who first invested in Everton in 2016, said he is ‘confident’ that 777 are the right partners to take control of the Premier League club.

He said: ‘Securing full funding for the new stadium remains a priority and I can assure you from personal experience that 777 have met every request we have put to them to date.

‘I now fully understand the frustration that the Premier League approval process has taken longer than initially expected.

‘It’s not ideal, but we have to respect the process in the Premier League and hope we just have to live with it for a while.

“We fully respect all our regulators, are working closely and constructively with them, and are patient with us while we are at home.

“I can also assure you that as soon as there is anything definitive to say, we will share it with you immediately.”

The Toffees are currently 16th in the Premier League table

Wander said 777 expected to close the acquisition in about three months, when it announced in September that the deal was nearing completion.

“None of us thought this process would take more than six months, instead of 12 to 14 weeks as we expected,” Wander said.

‘I look forward to answering your questions to the extent we are able, but I would like to manage your expectations that we will not be able to do so before the transaction closes, in line with the advice we have received regarding to the ongoing regulatory processes.

‘However, all of us at 777 Partners – including myself – remain committed to a productive working relationship with the FAB and other organized fan groups once we take ownership of Everton FC.”